March Madness betting, ticket scams targeting college basketball tournament fans
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The ABC7 I-Team has a March Madness scam warning.
You could be betting on your favorite college team or trying to get tickets to a game. But before you spend or click a link, you need to hear this alert.
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Security experts at "TrustedSec" say there are several scams targeting people watching the tournament.
One is fake ticket sales. Scammers often sell screenshots of tickets, which don't properly scan once you arrive at the ticket gate. You should only buy tickets through verified sellers and ask for an official "mobile ticket transfer," which sends a ticket from one account to another. Watch out for bargain tickets or requests for wire transfers.
Another scam to look out for is bogus bracket challenges.
"When it comes to brackets and online there's a lot of fake brackets out there," said Alex Hamerstone with TrustedSec. "You may get an email or some kind of contact on social media asking you to join a bracket it may look like a legitimate site what we are all used to, but it's actually a fake site. So, they are trying get you to give your information and payment card data. Additionally, there are also brackets out there that may never pay out. You may join it send your money in and never see a penny."
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Watch out for promises of huge payouts, and be skeptical of anyone texting you or messaging you about betting or offering deals on game tickets.
More March Madness scams
-Scam sports handicappers and betting syndicates: These scams are usually promoted through social media.
- Fake sports betting sites or apps: These can be very convincing, with legitimate-looking online ads and phishing sites that imitate real gambling services.
- Malicious notifications and alerts (SMS, email, direct messages, messaging apps): Cybercriminals will impersonate sports betting platforms by sending consumers fake notifications aimed at stealing their information or money. These include fake signup/registration notifications, billing/penalty/fee notices, overdraft alerts, "account fraud detected," bonus or free gift offers, and more.
- Fake streaming links: Everyone wants to watch the big games, but don't get fooled by a spoofed site that can steal your info, payment details and/or install malware on your device.
- Account Hijacking: Using social engineering, malware and brute-forcing, hackers will hijack sports betting accounts to get access to linked financial accounts, stored funds, accumulated rewards/points or personal information. Those most at risk are people who don't actively use their accounts - i.e., "zombie accounts".
- Identity theft gambling: Hackers will use stolen identities to register on certain platforms, placing large bets using someone else's financial accounts.
